Pam Richter
The fall classic will begin tonight at Yankee Stadium in a highly anticipated matchup between two of baseball's powerhouses. The Phillies will come into the series as the defending World Champions, where as the Yankees will be attempting to end their supposed, championship drought. Here is a breakdown of some of the key aspects of the game:
- Starting Pitching: Phillies. Call me crazy a biased Phillies fan, but I seriously think the Phillies have the edge in this category. CC Sabathia has been pitching a lot on three games rest and quite frankly, I don't know how much longer he can do it. Also, in last year's NLDS when Sabathia was on the Brewers, the Phillies pounded Sabathia and forced him to be taken out in three plus innings. Going into that series, he was called upon a lot to pitch on three games rest and if that trend continues, he will eventually wear down. A.J. Burnett has been mediocre at best for the Yankees, where as Andy Pettite has been superb. Pettite will pitch strong, but Burnett and Sabathia will falter.
- Relief pitching: Neither team. Relief pitching will be the downfall for both teams in the series. The Yankees have Mariano Rivero in the closing role, but my question is who will be the set up man. Joba and Phil Hughes have struggled in that role and even if starting pitching goes strong for the Yankees, they'll probably need someone to bridge the gap to Rivero. For the Phillies, we have heard the Brad Lidge woes all season long. Lidge is not back to his last-season form, despite what some analysts may claim. He has not been put in a pressure situation and both Ryan Madson and Scott Eyre haven't stepped up and proven to be the closer. Which ever team makes the least amount of mistakes in the bulpen will have an edge in the series.
- Offense: Yankees. From top to bottom, the Yankees have the more explosive lineup. A-Rod is playing like he is capable and everyone else is contributing as well. The Phillies have just been too inconsistent in the postseason. The Yankees are sure to focus in on Ryan Howard, and the question for the Phillies is can Jayson Werth and Jimmy Rollins step up for the Phillies? Werth has had a great postseason, but needs to be the explosive right-handed bat in the middle of the lineup that he is capable of. With the exception of his walk-off heroics, Rollins hasn't been that effective in the lead off role. Advantage here goes to the Yankees.
- Intangibles: Phillies. The Philadelphia Phillies are the underdog as the defending World Champions, which is an odd position for a team to be in, but that's the case. Not many believe they can be the Yankees, but they have one thing the Yankees don't - experience. The Phillies won the World Series last year, with virtually the same exact team. They lost Pat Burrell to free agency, but gained Cliff Lee. Charlie Manuel knows how to manage this team and even though a lot of his moves are questionable, the players have faith in Manuel. They have the experience, but also the tenacity in the role of the underdog.
- Prediction: Phillies in seven games. Yes, I am a Phillies fan, but that's not why I'm picking them. I truly believe they will defeat the Yankees. It won't be easy, and it will be a lengthy series, but they will get the job done. As I said, they have the postseason experience, something that the Yankees lack. Yes, a lot of players on the Yankees have been on postseason runs, but not together. The Phillies are a close group that is on a mission. Also, the Yankees have not really faced a postseason test. The Angels virtually lost the series on their own making a significant number of errors. The Phillies had to battle through a tough NLDS against the Rockies. Playing tough games in the postseason will help lead the Phillies to victory in the World Series.